Saudi Arabia’s state mining company and Rio Tinto Alcan on Monday said they were reviewing a $10.5bn aluminium project, which was seen as an integral part of diversifying the kingdom’s oil-dependent economy, in the wake of the deepening financial crisis.

The statements from Ma’aden and the international mining giant – which have a preliminary agreement to mine bauxite and build a refinery, smelter and power station to produce at least 1.4m tons of alumina a year and 650,000 tons of aluminium – are further evidence of how the global credit crunch is impacting the oil-rich Gulf.